Insulation batt packaging



J n- 1964 D. w. BURNETT ETAL. 3,117,513

INSULATION BATT PACKAGING 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 14. 1961 .M. Y S w E R L J A ,mtmm m T mm? m w m m K B wLAj, i m d fl RP wmm Jr mmm v M 0 4 A, A x? Q 3/ 45 Q Fig.l

1964 D. w. BURNETT ETAL 3, 7,

INSULATION BATT PACKAGING Filed Aug. 14, 1961 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 W n le 24 l 2o I," I /32 52 Fig.3 lo

= 12 56 .4 52 oxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxg; 38 1/ IR 36 48 34 5448 Fig.2

' INVENTORS David W. Burnett Robert L. Kilgore William A. Hardcustle Jr.

ATTORNEY Fig.4

United States Patent M 3,117,513 INSULATION BAT! PACKAGING David W. Burnett, Anderson, Ind., Robert L. Kilgore, Dover, N.J., and William A. Hardcastle, Jr., Hamburg, N.Y., assignors to National Gypsum Company, Buffalo, N.Y., a corporation of Delaware Filed Aug. 14, 1961, Ser. No. 131,329 1 Claim. (Cl. 100-215) This invention relates to a method and apparatus for packaging units of low density insulation material commonly known as insulation batts, and particularly for receiving such batts, compressing them and inserting them into suitable containers.

-In packaging insulation batts. it is Customary to take advantage of the resilient character of the material by compressing them in the direction of thickness and packaging them, in the compressed state, within a sleeve, sack or carton.

Upon subsequent release from the package, the batts, by reason of their resiliency, re-ex and to approximately their original uncompressed thickness.

The common method of packaging insulation batts consisted of stacking the batts in 1a box-like enclosure by loading through an open side of the enclosure, lowering a platen downward from the top of the enclosure to compress the stack of batts therein to a substantially reduced volume, and then forcing the compressed stack, through a spouted opening in one end of the enclosure, slidably into the desired container which is fitted around the spouted opening, a piston at the opposite end of the enclosure being suitable for such forcing of the compressed stack.

In the area of the above prior method and apparatus, a problem existed in that no material could be loaded into the apparatus during the time period of the compression and ejection of the batts. As a result of this fact, an interruption and delay existed in the production line movement of material, resulting in a relatively lower capacity and eiiciency of the apparatus, creating either the need for a greater number of packaging apparatuses or an over-all relatively low production rate.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel method of receiving, compressing and packaging insulation batts without interruption of the rate of movement of material of a production line.

-It is a further object of the present invention to pro vide an apparatus for receiving, compressing and packag'mg insulation batts in accordance with the novel method of the invention.

These and other objects of the invention will be more readily apparent when considered in relation to the preferred embodiments as set forth in ti e specification and shown in the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of the appartus for receiving, compressing and pack-aging insulation batts, in accordance with the invention.

FIGS. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 are sectional side views of the loading, compressing and ejecting portion of the machine of FIG. 1, throughout progressive steps in the operation thereof.

Referring now to the drawings, there is shown the novel insulating batt packaging machine it). Although machine 1%} is intended primarily for use in packaging insulating batts 12, 12, it could be readily adapted for packaging any resilient product, wherein a flattening, or compressing in one direction, is desired prior to placing the compacted product into a package.

In the embodiment shown, machine 10, includes a main box 14 having an open top 16, a front Wall 18 having a small, full width ejecting chute 20 projecting outwardly therefrom, generally centered vertically in said front wall 3,117,5i3 Patented Jan. 14,1964

2 18, a back wall 22, two sidewalls 24, 24 and a bottom wall 26.

Chute 29, extending across the full width of the front wall 18, is of a height equal to the thickness desired of batts 12 to be compressed in machine It) and projects outwardly from front wall 18 a sufficient distance to receive the open end of a package 28 into which compressed batts 12 are to be packaged.

A horizontal top plate 30 is horizontally slidably mounted in machine 10, at a height equal to the top of chute 20, on guide rails 32 afiixed on side walls 24, 24-, and extending into a slot 34 in back wall 22, whereby top plate 30 may be sl-id from a position within box 14, whereat the portion thereb'elow in box14 is enclosed by the top plate, to a position outside of box 14 causing the box to be completely open for passage of batts to the bottom section of the box.

Extending through bottom wall 26 is a piston shaft 36 with a horizontal bottom plate 38 thereon Within the box 14, the bottom plate 38 being equal in area to bottom wall 26, and having hydraulic raising means 40, mounted below box 14, for raising shaft 36 and bottom plate 33.

Extending through back wall 22 is a piston shaft 42 with a vertical pusher plate 44 thereon within the box 14, the pusher plate 44 being equal in area to the opening of chute 20, disposed exactly opposite to chute 20, and having hydraulic pushing and retracting means 46 mounted outside of box 14 for reciprocating pusher plate 44 from. adjacent back wall 22 to and into chute 2t} and return.

In the preferred embodiment of the invention both the top plate 30 and the bottom plate 38 have conveyor belts 48 movable thereon in a direction parallel to the direction of movement of pusher plate 44, with conveyor belt supporting rollers 50 rotatably mounted within the conveyor belts supported at the roller ends in frames 52. A stationary plate 54 is mounted over the conveyor belt 48 on top plate 30.

A loading roller conveyor 56 is arranged to \feed insulating batts 12 from a production line (not shown) into the open top of box 14.

The packaging process, in accordance with the invention consists of the steps of filling the hopper portion of box 14 above top plate 39 with insulating batts 12 which become stacked therein as they come from roller conveyor 56. The top plate 30/ is retracted to a position outside of box 14 and the stack of insulating batts tall onto the bottom plate 38 which is in a raised position.

'Iihe bottom plate 38 is then lowered to the bottom wall 26 and top plate 3t} is returned to a closed position within box 14. Bottom plate 38 is raised to a position parallel with the bottom of pusher plate 44 and chute 2%, cornpressing the insulating batts 1 2 between the bottom plate =38 and the top plate 30'. Depending upon the maximum pressure necessary to compress the batts and upon the total weight of top plate 30, the weight alone of the top plate 30 may be sufficient to prevent any upward movement of top plate 30 during the compression step. However, it will be readily apparent that if greater pressure is needed for compression, or if a top plate 3% of lesser weight is desired than would be necessary to prevent such upward movement, any suitable mechanical means for holding down top plate 3d during compression could be added to the machine it such as a second set of guide rails, similar to guide rails 32, disposed immediately above top plate 30 and parallel thereto. Pusher plate 44 then pushes the compacted insulating batts out from box 14 through chute 20, the roller conveyor on each of the bottom plate and the top plate moving with the batts 12 permitting ease of ejection without damage to the batts.

From the time the top plate 30 is returned to a closed position, as abovesaid, a subsequent stack of insulating batts to be compressed accumulates thereon simultaneous with the steps of compressing and ejecting being carried on Within the box.

Typical dimensions of insulating batts, uncompressed, are widths of 11', 15", 19" and 23", lengths of 2, 4', and 8' and thicknesses of 1 /2", 2", 3", 3%", 4", 5" and 6". With a most common size batt being 15" X 4' X 3", the box 14 is constructed of 4 foot length, 15 inch Width, and a maximum height from the bottom plate 38 to the top plate 39 of 30 inches, sufficient for ten batts 12. The preferred minimum height from bottom plate 38 to top plate 30 is approximately 13 /2 inches, with the pusher plate 44 and chute 20 being also 13 /2 inches in height, to produce a compressed package of ten, normally 3 inch thick batts, which is 13 /2 inches thick. Other batt sizes will be packaged a greater or lesser number of batts per package and by folding longer or wider batts, and by stacking shorter batts in end to end relation.

Having completed a detailed disclosure of the preferred embodiment of our invention so that those skilled in the art may practice the same, we contemplate that variations may be made without departing from the essence of the invention or the scope of the appended claim.

We claim:

Apparatus for packaging resilient compressible material comprising a compacting chamber and a loading hopper disposed above said chamber, said chamber having two opposed horizontally disposed face walls, the lower said face wall being vertically movable relative to the upper face wall for-compacting material in said chamber to a relatively smaller than normal volume, said upper face wall being removably disposed between said chamber and said hoppersubstantially completely separating said chamber and said hopper whereby on removal of said face wall said material may be inserted in uncompressed form to substantially fill said chamber, a first vertical end wall of said chamber having a movable wall portion, said movable wall portion having a vertical disposition between said face walls when said lower vertically movable face Walt is fully raised to a material compacting position, said movable wall portion being movable between said face walls in a direction perpendicular to the plane of said end Wall, a second end wall opposite said first end Wall having an opening therein opposite and equal in area to said movable Wall portion means for moving said lower face wall relative to said upper face wall for compaction of material therebetween, means for moving said movable wall portion whereby compacted material is ejected out said opening, and a surface on said face Walls freely movable in the direction of movement of said movable Wall portion, said surface on each said face wall consisting of an endless flat belt conveyor mounted on a plurality of freely rotatable conveyor belt supper-ting rollers, whereby said surfaces freely move with said material during ejection thereof.

References (Iited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,857,707 Bell May 10, 1932 1,949,917 Muench Mar. 6, 1934 2,059,229 Gregg Nov. 3, 1936 2,324,869 Oman Jnly 20, 1943 2,780,989 Gay Feb. 12, 1957 2,917,991 Segur Dec. 22, 1959 2,955,529 Marble Oct. 11, 1960 FOREIGN PATENTS 569,026 Great Britain May 1, 1945 908,447 Germany Apr. 5, 1954 1,233,688 France May 9, 1960 

